Electro-heads rejoice, for your prayers have been answered. Seriously folks, Din_Fiv's latest release is damn good. This time around, Da5id mixes both the old styles of electro-EBM that he's mastered and some newer elements to make an electro-purists dream record here. Obviously influenced by the newer, more emotional works by VNV Nation and Assemblage 23, young Da5id has created 8, more heart felt but still poundingly industrial tunes, along with 2 mixes by the likes of Battery and AEC. Through the Looking Glass is a good way to start the album. Sporting a more mid-paced old school type 4/4 beat with thick bubbly sequences, nice strings, and Da5id customary distorted mumble, you get the feel of the tracks to come. While I've always been a fan of Da5id's lyrics, this time around they seem especially insightful, and each song has a very poignant message to it....a VERY rare occurrence! We Are is probably the happiest song I've ever heard from an industrial band, yet is still quite good. A quirky mix of mild synthpop and electro, Din achieves a hybrid X Marks/Informatik sound here that works very well with its techno beat and biting lyrics. The string work on this album, while being simplistic and often 4 note patterned, is still gorgeous. Conspiracy sounds more like the previous album, with another old school beat, fluttery synths and basslines, and an overall driving rhythm. A pleasant surprise, Escape is all strings, and Live For Today has a slower breakbeat turned faster beat with another moving rhythm and melody alongside its old school sequences. The best, however, was Infinite Paths. Featuring string and melody work that would make VNV envy, this song goes from fast breakbeat into straight techno here, and has a chorus I still can stop singing. The AEC mix retains the original quality of the song along with a harder beat, and snippets of noise circulating around the electro core, while the Battery mix, unfortunately, just didn't do the trick. Turning the moving and poppy song into a more quirky, jumpy breakbeat induced track, Battery falls a little short and loses the feel of the original song which had something to say. I'm not saying its bad...just not right. Still, it is wonderful how Din mixes the techno-y present electro with the old Leaetherstrip-type electro past into a rich tapestry of quality music with a message and a purpose.
reviewed by D. Sudia
   
METROPOLIS RECORDS                      Din_Fiv is: Da5id Din
P.O. Box 54307                                             Contact Din_Fiv @ e-mail: din_fiv@sinless.com
Philadelphia, PA 19105
e-mail: metropol@voicenet.com
Metropolis homepage:
http://www.voicenet.com/~metropol

1)  Through the Looking Glass    2)  We Are          3)  Conspiracy
4)  I Say                        5)  Escape          6)  Live for Today
7)  Cataclysm                    8)  Infinite Paths  9)  We Are (Deathguild mix by BATTERY)
10) Terminal Condition (Guilt Central Station remix by AEC)